Bonds
by LUVingu20293
Summary: Ginny notices things- people, items, small things that others do not. This year, Ginny notices Draco Malfoy is quiet and reserved and seemingly abandoned within the Slytherin House. They bond over Alchemy, Quidditch, and their hate of the Wizarding War, blossoming into a fragile friendship and Draco's secret might ruin it all.
1. Mercury

Ginny concluded that this was the worst summer of her life-not only was she the only one trapped at The Burrow all summer, but she also wasn't allowed to leave her childhood home either. "Under no circumstances.." he father had said with a tone of authority that she had never seen before.

The days had passed slowly with a lack of activity as Ginny spent most days daydreaming of the day when she would be old enough to make her own decisions. The Burrow was quiet most days, with the occasional visitors, usually later at night when she was already in bed. Once a week, The Order held a meeting, which rotated locations between The Burrow and Grimmauld Place. Ginny was bored and lonely. Most of her friends were either in hiding or away on holiday, hoping that when they returned home that the war would be over.

Tonight, her mother was tight lipped as Ginny set the table for 3- her mother, father, and herself. Deciding that she had lacked enough social interaction for the rest of her life over the span of 3 weeks, Ginny asked, "When is the next meeting?"

Her mother stiffened suddenly, a small frown forming on her face, as she replied, "Tonight," a quiet moment passed before she continued, "And you are expected to remain quietly in your room for the duration of the meeting."

Ginny gave a side glance at her mother, not daring to upset her by asking any more questions. However, her mother spoke up again, a hint of a grin gracing her face, "Maybe afterwards we can eat some of the Apple pie I made though." Ginny nodded feelings the first smile of the summer break spread across her face. Her mom's Apple pie was to die for!

They ate dinner in a quiet, comfortable silence, until Ginny was excused to her room without even helping to clean up. Time had caught up to them and it was now 7:39pm with only 21 minutes until their meeting. Ginny sat in her room with a quill and a piece of parchment, writing another letter to her boyfriend, Harry Potter. He had left, disappeared more like, within the first week of their return to the Burrow for summer break, along with Ron and Hermione. The house was full of commotion the first two days after their disappearance until an anonymous letter had arrived with three simple words- "We are okay." Her mother's hysteria had calmed down immensely but that was when the stricter rules had been given to Ginny. No leaving the house without permission and no owls were to be accepted or sent without permission were her added rules. She frowned at the thought of being trapped indoors all summer. The last time she had asked to go outside for a walk around the grounds surrounding the Burrow her mother had gone pale and yelled "No! Do you not realize how dangerous it is out there? You will stay inside unless accompanied by an adult." She hadn't had the nerve to ask again.

Now, however, Ginny sat, scribbling out another letter to Harry similar to the others she has previously sent- her worries, her boring summer, her love for him. She kept on trying to contact him despite the fact that each previous letter had been sent back untouched and unread as her owl, Mercury, was unable to locate him.

Mercury was a medium size Barn Owl and a gift from her brother Charlie for her 16th birthday. His feather were a golden brown and his eyes a piercing amber color. He had a heart shaped face and hooted in delight when Ginny petted his head. Otherwise he was quiet and slept on the window sill at night, almost like a protector as Ginny slept.

Once Ginny's letter was completed she lightly pet Mercury's tail feathers and fed him an owl treat. She tied the letter to his foot with skill, as she had sent many letters since she had began to attend Hogwarts. She looked at Mercury, apologetically and with tears threatening to spill, said "I have to try one last time to reach him, Mercury. Fly safe and find Harry." Mercury gave a soft hoot and rubbed his head against her hand before turning to fly out the window in Ginny's room.

Ginny turned somberly and fell to her bed in a fit of teenage anger, screaming into her mattress to relieve some of it. Then, she heard a loud "Pop". The first time she had heard a wizard or witch apparate into the house in more than a year. Quietly and deliberately, she rose off the bed and to the door. Grabbing her Extendable Ears, she jammed them into her ears so she could hear what was happening downstairs that could possibly warrant them opening their wards to someone appearing into their home. To her dismay, she could only her a few words here and there that were shouted from time to time. She then realized that her mother had probably put a type of silencing charm over the members of the Order so that Ginny could not eavesdrop. The door to the house would receive an occasional knock as the clock got closer and closer to 8pm.

She sat silently, still trying hard to listen to the loud conversation downstairs, when she heard the sound of footsteps climbing the stairs. She quickly pulled her Extendable Ears back to her and climbed up to her bed, opening the nearest book. A quiet, repetitious knock responded through her room, followed by a much louder one. "Come in!" she yelled. The door creaked open to reveal Tonks, whose hair was a bright shade of orange with vibrant blue eyes. Ginny would never cease to be amazed at Tonks' eclectic looks.

"Tonks!" she yelled as she scrambled up to give her a hug. Tonks squeezed her tight and pulled back to look at Ginny. "Lookin' good, as always, Gin-girl!" Tonks responded with a grin. Tonks reached into her pocket and pulled out a bright purple quill that had Ginny's name written on the side in gold. "For you," she beamed again and handed her the quill. Ginny smiled brightly, thankful to have something, anything, that wasn't second hand. "Thank you Tonks!" She reached to give her another hug when she felt a soft nudge on her side.

Ginny looked up at Tonks waiting to hear from her what she now knew to be true.

"Yes Gin, you're going to be an Aunt!" Tonks whispered loudly, "but don't tell your mom. Lupin and I haven't told anyone.. well, 'cept for you now," her voice quieter now. Ginny smiled, happy that life continued almost as normal and happy that Lupin would finally get his wish to become a father. "I better go before this 'important' meeting begins Gin-girl! You behave and don't be listening in now," she winked as she spotted the Extendable Ears near Ginny's door.

Giving up, Ginny looked under her bed at the books that Hermione had given her , some of which being the books that she would be using in her 6th year classes. Grabbing the Alchemy book, Ginny settled into her bed with the intentions of reading herself to sleep.


	2. Not All That Glitters

Summer continued as usual, well, as usual as the rest of it had been. Boring would be a more appropriate word though. Ginny spent most of her days in her room- reading, writing letters, and even occasionally altering her hand-me-down clothes with a few simple charms that she had read about. She has tried to stay as busy as possible so as to avoid the reality of her summer, her boyfriend, and, well really, her whole life.

Harry still had not written back and she wasn't really surprised as the Trio was probably trying to remain hidden from the world. However, she was lonely and tired of feeling it too. She wrote letters to her friend Luna , which often times went days unanswered; to Harry, which was only occasional now; to her brothers Charlie, Bill, Fred, and George, all of whom responded politely with small details about their lives and then cut it short due to being so "busy"; she tried to write to her friend Colin Creevey, but there wasn't much luck there either as his parents had sent him to an American School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Since Ginny's First year she refused to use a journal or diary despite her mother's constant encouragement that it was completely normal. Therefore, Ginny was desperately craving human socialization since her parents were always busy and she barely had any communication with the outside world.

The good thing was that Ginny had spent much of her remaining time reading her 6th year Alchemy book. She had read all about the theories behind Alchemy, reading of the great Alain de Lille, as well as Nicolas Flamel, and the creation of the Philosopher's Stone. Ginny was intrigued, so intrigued that she had written a letter to Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall in the hopes that she could enroll in 6th year Alchemy since she hadn't originally done so. She had received a reply that afternoon, Dumbledore said he was more than happy to allow her access to one of the most provocative and stimulating class that he had ever had the pleasure of learning. He also sent a list of required items and the name of the text, Alchemyst, which she had already read. She was excited to get back to Hogwart's to learn more about the subject that intrigued her so.

The weeks past slowly, uneventful except for the occasional sharp whisper from her mother to her father, "Not now, Arthur!" followed by a sharp look in Ginny's direction. Three days before the beginning of her 6th year her mother came and asked for Ginny's list of supplies for school, as she was heading out to Diagon Alley. Ginny put on her best frown as she handed the list she had prepared over.

"Now, don't start Ginny. You know its dangerous out there!" Molly spoke firmly but with a gentle tone. Ginny just nodded her head somberly. "I know mum, it's just.. just that I haven't gone anywhere all summer and.. I just want to get out the house!" Ginny replie.d, her emotions getting the best of her.

"Oh! Poor thing you! I know this summer has been miserable but.. your father and I agreed- oh bullocks!- Meet me in 10 minutes and you musn't tell your father!" Molly shook her head and walked away to grab her robe before their travels.

Ginny ran upstairs, excited for the first time in months. She was actually going to leave the house! A smile graced her face as she quickly grabbed her stash of coins that she had gotten over the years. With one last look in the mirror at her appearance, she quickly tied her robe and headed for the fireplace to meet her mom.

Molly stood there, rather anxious and impatient, waiting for her youngest child to appear, so they could make the trip to Diagon Alley. Her foot tapped the floor, a nasty habit she had developed over the years, ready to leave and be back home again. With a quick glance at everyone's locations on her clock, she grabbed Ginny's hand as she descended the stairs, took a handful of floo powder, and yelled "Diagon Alley".

With an eerie quietness, they walked the many streets of Diagon Alley. There's wasn't nearly the amount of witches and wizards as Ginny had previously seen and some shops were closed due to business being slow. Her mother, despite Ginny's wishes, continued to hold her hand as they walked. They passed Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour and Madame Malkin's, wherein Ginny threw a longing glance at the store front. Her eyes caught the familiar white blond head of her boyfriends adversary, Draco Malfoy, as he entered the robe shop. His eyes caught hers and with a sneer he turned on heel and entered the shop. Ginny snorted to herself- some things never change.

They entered Flourish and Blott's wherein Mrs. Wesley finally released her daughter's hand. With a stern look that said, "do not leave this shop", Mrs. Wesley proceeded to pick up the only book that Ginny didn't get handed down to her. However Ginny took this moment to peruse the shelves in search of additional Alchemy books. She touched the spines of the books gently while she walked the aisles, pausing shortly when a title caught her interest. She continued to look over the selections finally settling on The Secrets of the Immortal by Nicolas Flamel. She approached the counter with her book and pulled her small coin pouch out.

"Miss, your book was purchased for you by another customer. Enjoy!" The elderly man smiled at her. "A good read, if I do say so myself!"

Ginny stood still, nervous even, that some stranger would have bought her book for her, after the previous incident 5 years ago at this very store. She smiled and thanked the man hoping that all would end well this time. She caught up with her mother at the front of the store and the proceeded to leave, until Ginny began mumbling about how "unfair" it was that they couldn't stop in and see her "favorite brothers." With a scowl in her daughter's direction, Molly led her daughter to her son's joke shop.

"Be quick about it now! And do not leave this store. I have one last purchase to make" Molly let go of Ginny's hand and exited the shop. She was more than enough confident of the skill of the three of her children combined.

Ginny bound into the store following the aisles to the far left side where the store counter was. With a smile, Ginny ran right up to her brother and with a fake American accent said, "Can I get some help please?" Her face was already lit up with a smile and she held back her laughter as he continued to look at one of their newest inventions.

"George! This young lady out her needs your help with something!" He yelled.

George walked out with a pile of products in his hands, gently laying them on the counter he shook his head, plastered a smile on his face and said, "Welcome to Weasleys' Wizards Wheezes.." he finally looked up. "Ginny! Our favorite little sister! Look Fred it's Gin!"

Fred quickly dropped the package in his hands and jumped the counter to hug her, "Aww! Look at 'er, George! She's getting big!" He took his hand and ruffled her hair, all the while, the biggest grin taking over his face and reaching all the way to his bright blue eyes.

There was a whirlwind of noise outside- a repetition of loud 'pops', followed by yelling, screaming, and the unmistakable whooshing noise of spells flying through the air. The twins exchanged a worried look before quickly nodding, one grabbing Ginny's hand, one pointing their wand at the front door to lock it, before rushing to the small office. Ginny could hardly process what was happening before she felt the familiar pull of her being side-along apparated.

Her heart was racing, she could hear the pounding noise in her ears and her breathing was ragged, as they landed on the edge of the backyard of the Burrow, two hands practically dragging her to the house. "Pick up your feet," one screamed. "Hurry up, you hard head," another yelled. She ran and ran to the backdoor, fear taking over her head and her heart- fear for her mom, her brothers, and herself.

"Oh my gosh! MUM!" her voice cracked slightly. How could she have forgotten about her own mother?

"She can handle herself!"

"Yeah, where did you think you get your spitfire attitude from?"

"Surely not me!"

"Nor me!"

One of the twins pointed their wand at the back door, swinging it open, so they could run through it unobstructed. With one last push, they landed on the floor of the Burrow's kitchen. Ginny held her chest having not ran that fast in years. She jumped up and ran to the family room and her eyes fell on the clock hand that held her mother's face.

Releasing a breath she hadn't known she was holding and a wry smile crossing her face, she sighed with relief as her mother's hand was pointing at "Travelling".


	3. Breath of Fresh Air

Ginny and her twin brothers had never been more grateful to see their mother ever before. She looked frazzled, of course, but quickly approached the back door before yelling, "Ginny!". Her eyes went wide and started pooling tears to the corners as she realizes that her daughter and twin sons were safe.

"I will be relieved when this war is finally over," she heaved out with a heavy breath. The other red heads nodded in agreement before enveloping their mother in a tight hug.

The trip to Platform 9 was quick, decisive, and surrounded by Order members until they parted ways for Ginny to board the Hogwarts Express. She easily found an empty cabin, headed to the window to weave goodbye, and settled in for the ride. Pulling out her new Nicolas Flamel book, she pulled her feet up onto the bench and picked up where she had last left off. Her mind focused on the words, catching small phrases and bringing them to life. Her mind was a whirlwind of activity- this new material was intriguing, and she continued to dive head first into it, absorbing every theory, making mental notes for her studies, and dreaming of the day that she might make advances in the field of Alchemy. The sun had long since set when her mind reverted back to the fact that they would be arriving soon. She tucked her book into the back pocket of her jeans, readjusted her robe, waited to hear the train whistle blow, before heading to the closest exit.

Ginny watched, her eyes twinkling, at the wondrous sight of the Great Hall. She would never tire of seeing the brilliance of the décor and the pride each House held. With that thought, she lifted her head to study the Slytherin table, which was much more quiet than usual, and had even less students than the previous year. She remembered her mother mentioning that some Slytherin's would of course be leaving school after their 17th birthday to join the efforts of the Death Eaters. Of course, some members had elected to send their children to other schools like Dumstrang, yet Hogwarts would forever be the safest. Her eyes combed through the table, quickly connecting faces with names and years. An interesting combination of students had stayed: Pansy Parkinson- the pug faced girl that had followed Malfoy for years; Theodore Nott- surprise but he had always kept to himself ; Millicent Bulstrode- the big, bulky girl with a perpetual scowl; Blaise Zabini- who's mother had remarried again the past summer, husband number 7 would have to be good luck; and, surprisingly enough, her eyes finally caught a hint of white blond hair. Draco Malfoy had returned to school to finish his last year at Hogwarts. There were obvious faces missing- Crabbe and Goyle- who all but flaunted their Dark Mark at the end of the last year; Marcus Flint- who was dumb as a rock but more loyal than a dog, and the Greengrass sisters- who were rumored to have been transferred to a school in Russia.

Ginny observed many more openings all around; Luna Lovegood- who was still in hiding; Lavender Brown and Colin Creevey- whose parents had decided they would be safer at home; Justin Flinch-Fletchley- the friendly 7th year Hufflepuff that Ginny had shamelessly flirted with before. Several more students were missing all over making the Great Hall much quieter. She looked to her side where Neville sat and smiled sweetly, "How was your summer, Neville?"

He shot her a small smile back, cordial more than anything, "Oh Gin, it was just lousy. Gran was anxious all summer, putting additional wards up, and keeping me locked in the house. Luna's been in hiding all summer and we usually see each other once a week when we're home." He heaved a big sigh before continuing, "I'm tired of living this way already and the real war hasn't even begun."

"Luckily we are back at Hogwarts, safe, and with more freedom than we had for the past few months," she gave a small encouraging smile, "it will get better. We will win and everything will be better than it ever was before." Her voice held strong even if her head and heart faltered through the short speech. She had to be strong for her friends, for her fellow students, and for her family. She had to show that the hope still existed and that the end of the fear, torture, and death would come- sooner rather than later.

The next morning the students received their schedules at breakfast. Ginny put hers to the side while she ate and observed her surroundings. Professor Dumbledore sat at the front talking merrily to both Professor Trelawney and Professor McGonagall. They shared a light together when his eyes lifted and met hers briefly and with a wink he turned back to the other professors. Ginny smiled to herself as they had always had a great relationship. She had shared many sleepless nights in Dumbledore's office-talking, dreaming, and sharing lemon drops. She took the time to look around the hall again- there was chatter and laughter and even looks of lust within the student population. Her eyes found the way to the Slytherin table finding a similar situation until her eyes settled on a pair of stormy grey ones. Thankfully, he wants looking at her but rather doing the same as she was. Her eyes drank in his apparance- bright blonde hair hanging loosely over his face, an expressionless mask but he wasn't engaging in conversation nor was her staring lustfully. He was sitting there all alone. Ginny had never seen him alone as it had always seemed that his cronies and Slytherin followers always surrounded him. With the loss of Crabbe and Goyle, Draco Malfoy looked almost pitiful to her.

Neville nudged her arm and shoved the parchment with his schedule in her face.

"Ginny! I have Potions with Snaps and the Slytherins again!" He sighed, as he had always been the butt of many jokes in Snape's classroom.

Ginny grabbed her parchment, breaking the Hogwarts seal on the back and unrolled it. Neville's eyes instinctively looked down at her schedule as well.

"Alchemy?" He questioned her with a raised eyebrow.

Ginny could feel a blush starting to rise on her face. His voice had raised slightly in surprise and she could practically feel a few stares turning to their direction. If there was one thing Ginny hated, it was staring. She had figured with the Trio gone, Ginny would be practically invisible. Her friends, for the most part, had not returned, the Trio was gone on some crazed "mission", and she would be free to act as she pleased without the constant supervision of her enraged older brother.

"And 7th Year Potions on Wednesdays and Fridays with me! And the Slytherins," he added.

'Hmmm. 7th Year Potions,' Ginny thought to herself, 'Surely there must be some kind of an error.'

She smiled at Neville for reassurance and said, "At least we will have support from each other in there."

He smiled in agreement, before turning back to her schedule, "They must have made a mistake with your schedule. First you're in 7th year Potions and then your Alchemy class doesn't even have any times, days, nor who will be teaching it!I would talk to McGonagall if I were you Gin."

With a sigh, Ginny nodded her head in agreement. She stood up from the table, yet again feeling stares from every direction. With uneasy feet but her head held high, she walked to the Head Table. More eyes had joined in to stare at her curiously.

"I wonder why she came back after…" someone said

Another chimed in, "She looks sad, I wonder if Harry Potter finally broke up with her."

"I call first dibs if he's single!"

"She's not even that pretty!"

She finally stood directly in front of Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall.

"I'm very sorry to disturb your breakfast," she began, "but there's obviously something wrong with my schedule. First, I'm in 7th year Potions Class. I'm not sure how this happened and I know I got an Outstanding in it on my O.W.L.s but I'm still only in my 6th year. She took another deep breath before continuing, "But then I see that you added my Alchemy Class, as I requested over the Holiday, however there's no dates, no times, and no Professor listed. Obviously I'm not crazy. I've been receiving my schedule for several years now and never have had this issue before.." Finally, Professor Dumbledore looked at her and with another sly wink he replied quietly, "Oh dear! You are right, I did make a mistake. I do believe if you check it now that the error will be corrected."

She looked at her schedule as it was magically transcribing the new information. With a smile, she noticed that Alchemy would be Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning with- who? She waited for the information to continue and when it did not she looked at Professor Dumbledore questioningly.

He smiled, "If that is all Miss Weasley, I do suggest that you arrive on time for your first class of the day."

She returned to the Gryffindor table, grabbing her messenger bag and saying a politely good bye and good luck to Neville, before making her trek to the Alchemy classroom. Her schedule said that Alchemy was going to be held in Classroom 7B in the West Tower, which would be one of the farthest classrooms from the Great Hall, of course. She practically jogged there; she didn't want to be late and curiosity was setting in on who the professor would be, as well as, who her classmates would be. She took a deep breath to compose herself once she reached the 7th floor, pushed her hair behind her ear, and hoisted her bag up higher before turning to enter the classroom.

Empty. Completely empty. She looked around the small classroom and saw 3 desks and the professors desk at the front, but nothing else. There was bright sunlight coming through the floor to ceiling windows, showing how dusty the classroom was. Ginny sighed again as today was off to a not-so-great start before picking a seat closest to the door. Time ticked by slowly before she heard footsteps coming from down the Hall. Her ex-boyfriend Michael Corner walked in accompanied by Hannah Abbot. They greeted her politely before taking their own respective seats at a table towards the middle of the classroom. Following shortly behind, the Patio twins walked in taking the table behind Hannah and Michael, gossiping in low voices, and occasionally shooting Ginny a glance. She glanced at the clock above the board at the front of the room.

'9 am is the start of Class' Ginny thought while her foot started to tap in frustration. 'it's 9:04!'

She heard another set of footsteps heading their way. She looked up expectantly waiting to see who the mysterious professor would be. However, Draco Malfoy strolled in. He scowled and rolled his eyes as he noticed the only empty chair was next to her. He took his seat without another glance in her direction.

"Welcome class!" came the calm and echoing voice of Professor Dumbledore. "I am glad to see that each of you have found your way to our classroom this morning. Now it's very rare that I take on the responsibility of teaching a Class, however, this is the first Alchemy class in nearly fifteen years!' A grin lit up his face before continuing, "And it is also my favorite subject."

"Now this will not be a normal class for you. We will not be taking notes or having tests. We will do an open forum style of learning and you will be paired, with the person sitting next to you, to complete a year and project. Now as you are all new to this subject matter, I will start today with an overview Alchemy as a study and how we will be using it in class. I have also assigned reading material for you," a piece of parchment appeared in front of each student, "from both your books, as well as, additional items from our Library. You have been given access to the Restricted Section but are expected not to misuse that special permission. Now open your books to page 3C and follow along."


	4. Transmutation

Ginny was so enamored by the overview of the subject , despite her previous knowledge, she found that Dumbledore's voice reading over it was , if possible, making her more interested in Alchemy. The class passed quickly, too quickly for Ginny's liking, and she was in no rush to leave. To her surprise, it seemed that Malfoy was thinking similarly as they both approached the Professor.

Dumbledore smiled at his two intelligent pupils as they approached his desk,

"Well, how did my first class in over fifteen years go?"

Draco Malfoy rolled his eyes, despite his obvious interest in the subject. Dumbledore had watched as the young man read the few pages of the introduction, his eyes widening and shining when something particularly interesting was being mentioned. Yet, he knew about his reputation and the "image" he had to maintain and continued to smile despite it.

"It was wonderful Professor! And to think, Nicolas Flamel was once a great friend of yours!" Ginny's smile widened, "I can't wait to dig deeper into the subject and learn more."

"Yes, Weasley, we know you must be so excited to be able to attend Hogwart's and receive an actual education. Although you could still use for some home training on manners," Malfoy drawled out with a scowl.

Ginny didn't let him ruin her good mood but she bid Professor Dumbledore a good day and quickly made her way to the Common Room to enjoy her free period.

Ginny had changed, grabbed her broom, and practically ran to the Quidditch Pitch to enjoy her free period in the warm air. She hadn't spent much time outside over the summer, that's for sure, and her skin could use the Vitamin D. It was a lovely day- the sun was high in the sky, a slight breeze fluttered through the trees, and the flowers were in full bloom on the grounds. Her feet felt the familiar ground beneath them with each step. She took off on a sprint from the castle doors to the Quidditch Pitch only stopping slightly to put her broom beneath her and adjust for take off. Her feet pushed off the ground effortlessly, as it had done numerous times before, her hair whipped back, dancing in the wind. She had never even noticed the other student that had arrived.

She was practicing her dives and spins when a streak of black was seen through her peripherals. She turned quickly towards the sight but just missed it before she saw it on the other side and turned that way and then felt them fly above her, again, quick and nimbly, just staying out of her sight. She began to lower herself to the ground, feeling uneasy of the situation before a hand reached from behind her and grabbed her arm.

"Better watch yourself there, Weasley," Malfoy sneered at her.

"I have every right to the Pitch just as you do!" Ginny replied indignantly, ignoring her original fear of the situation at hand.

"Oh come on, Weasley, I was just having a bit of fun with you," a slight smirk appeared on his pale face. His hair was hanging just slightly in his eyes, and his cheeks were flush from the warm air and the breeze. His eyes were glistening mischievously, and despite Ginny's prior fear, she couldn't help but to feel as though he was teasing her without his usual maliciousness. And, Merlin, he looked good this year! She had always known that Malfoy was attractive, since she had first seen him, even if she didn't acknowledge so, her dorm mates would always gossip about this or that in his personal life and his physique. Draco Malfoy was the "forbidden fruit" of the Gryffindor women, for although each thought he was the definition of good looking, no one would tarnish their own reputation by pursuing him in any way.

Ginny realized that she had not replied and had spent a good bit of time instead admiring him.

A fierce blush covered her face before she decided to break the silence by swiftly hitting his arm, "You're It!" and taking off at full speed. A smile, a real smile, broke out across his face as he pursued her.

Draco Malfoy had never grown up with siblings, nor cousins near his age. He had hardly ever played games like "Tag" unless he could devise it behind his father's back with the House Elves. His first friend had been a Muggle girl he had met when wandering the edge of his mother's garden. She was loud and rambunctious and he had enjoyed keeping their friendship a secret for awhile, until she had lost her toy doll on their grounds. They had spent the entire day searching for the doll to no avail, and they had both been late for dinnertime and still had not found it. His father had found it the next morning, burnt it in the fireplace with a repugnant look on his face, and forbade him from playing with Elise ever again. He was banned from being outside for the rest of the Spring and come summertime, she had went on Holiday and he had never seen her again.

His next friend had been Blaise Zabini at the age of five. Blaire was fun to socialize with at the many functions they were expected to appear at, but he could never be trusted. Blaise Zabini was a survivalist and he would always turn his back on you. His loyalties were to himself only.

Draco found himself lost in the childish game of Tag as they raced around the Quidditch Pitch together. They had made subtle jokes and mocked one another, all in the name of the game and he found that he was smiling more than he had ever before. The simplistic banter between the two was carried on easily, and neither had taken anything offensively. He watched as she moved gracefully, obviously skilled in how to handle a broomstick. Shaking his head, he glanced at his watch, "Weasley!"

"Weasley!" he yelled again, as he chased after her.

"Don't think I'm falling for any of your tricks, Malfoy," she replied as she picked up speed.

"Weasley! Free period is over!" he yelled, trying to get her to focus on the important part of what he was saying.

She giggled, as she did small loops, avoiding his chase. "Malfoy, don't be a sore loser and admit you can't catch me!"

With a huff, Malfoy landed gracefully on the ground. Ginny continued flying through the air until she realized that he was no longer gaining on her. She spotted him standing in the middle of the Pitch, arms crossed across his chest and his broom resting against his body. His face looked mischievous again with a twinkle in his eyes, despite the lack of expression in his face.

"Free period ended 15 minutes ago," he said blandly.

"Malfoy! Why didn't you tell me?" she stomped up to him and pushed him.

He threw his hands in the air, "I did tell you! You hardheaded woman! I yelled your name 10 times and said that free period was ending another 6 times! What did you think I was saying?"

Ginny shrugged her shoulders, "Something to help you cheat!" Her face broke into a frown as she contemplated the situation at hand. Free period ended 15 minutes ago. That made her 10 minutes late to class already, but she would have to go to her room and change first, which would make her about 25 minutes late, and then the trip down to the Green Houses would add another 15 minutes from the Common Room. Shrugging her shoulders again, she shook her head and was about to hop on her broom and take off when Malfoy reached a hand out to the top of her broom.

His eyes were wide and filled with questions, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Well, if I leave now, I will be almost an hour late! And that's if I don't take a shower before heading down to Herbology. Therefore, I have decided that I am going to skip that class, fly for a couple more minutes, and then go to my Common Room and change for Lunch." She smiled and flicked her hair over her shoulder before kicking off.

She looked back at him with a carefree smile, "Coming or not?"

He instinctively took the bait, kicked off the ground, and chased after her, quickly touching her shoulder her said, "You're It!" before racing away again.

At Lunch, she was approached by Demelza Robins, a fellow Quidditch teammate that was in her year. She was much taller than Ginny but she was much skinnier. Her hair was a pretty reddish-brown and her eyes were bright blue. Demelza and her had never really been close, but they had shared plenty of time and laughs together being in the same dormitory year after year.

"You missed Herbology, Gin. Is everything okay?" She asked concerned.

"Oh… yeah I'm fine. I went to take a nap after my first class of the day and I didn't wake up in time for Herbology," Ginny answered with a slight glance at the Slytherin table. Her mind wandered back to the enjoyable time she had that m4orning with Malfoy. A slight smile popped on her face as her mind slipped away in reverie.

"Ginny?" Demelza waved a hand in front of her face. "Helloo?"

"Oh, sorry! I am in such a weird mood today," Ginny explained and shook her head to clear her thoughts.

Demelza shifted closer, "I know we aren't

the greatest of friends, Gin, but you can tell me." Ginny gave her a confused look and she continued, "who is it that struck your fancy already?"

Demelza scanned around the Great Hall, stopping and suggesting names, "Anthony Goldstein maybe? No, oka.., how about Ernie Macmillan? He's really a nice guy.. Oh, I guess not. Hmm, Terry Boot? He has a similar personality to Harry..."

"I do not _fancy_ anyone Demelza," she giggled lightly, "I am happy to be back at Hogwarts, especially after the boring summer I had. But I can't help but be reminded of all the bad- the War, my family and friends being safe, and then all the memories this castle holds on top of that. It would be much easier if I had some school girl crush!"

"If you say so Gin, but I know that look!"

"Well, what about you? Anyone caught your fancy?"

Demelza gave a coy smile, "You promise not to cast any judgement?"

Ginny held out her pinky, a childish notion that she chose not to let go. Their fingers hooked tightly together and Demelza leaned in, "It's Neville!"

"Ne-?" her hand clamped over her own mouth as she realized how loud she was.

"Shhh!! Don't let the whole bloody school know. But yes. We actually met over the summer in Diagon Alley and got ice cream together." She took her elbow and nudged Ginny, "And if you didn't notice, he has grown into quite the man," her eyebrows wiggled suggestively.

Ginny's face scrunched up, while she tried to hold her lunch down. "No I did not notice!"

Her friend laughed, "Well you're the only one. He's got quite the little fan club already."

Ginny leaned close and whispered, "Neville? Longbotton? Are you sure that we are talking about the same person here? Neville, who can't hardly hold a full conversation without sputtering? Neville, who is deathly afraid of both Snape and his grandmother? There must be some kind of mistake.

As if on cue, Neville walked into the Great Hall.

"Watch," Demelza whispered back.

And so she did. Ginny watched as the Patil twins frantically whispered between themselves, their eyes following Neville down the aisle. Cho Chang from Ravenclaw, waved and smiled at him, but he didn't notice, as his head was down staring at his hand. A short Second Year girl, turned to her friend and pretended to faint from his looks. Similar reactions were seen in a multitude of the female population, even including, some Slytherins.

"Merlin, I didn't even know it," Ginny gasped.

"Don't know what, Gin?" Neville asked, as he sat opposite of the two girls.

"Oh, nothing, just some Quidditch stuff," she quickly replied.

The girls exchanged a glance and broke out into soft giggles. Ginny had decided that this year would be solely about her happiness. With the Golden Trio gone, Ginny could do whatever she wanted without interference and maybe a friend like Demelza was just what she needed to help her enjoy it even more.


	5. Friction

September passed quickly and soon the trees were changing from bright green to gold, oranges, and reds. The first month of school had been decidedly uneventful after that first day of classes. Malfoy had been cordial, at best, while they were in class. Outside of class, he was quiet and reserved and the day on the Pitch was never spoken of. Demelza was still set on her infatuation with Neville and had finally gotten the nerve to ask him to Hogsmeade, as friends, along with Ginny.

Ginny sat on her bed, legs crossed, as she scribbled a short letter to her mother as an update of her school year so far. She closed the letter by asking, once again, if her mother had heard anything- anything at all- from or about the Trio. It had been four long months since the Trio had left the Burrow, four months of longing, and four months that they had all felt fear grip their hearts.

Demelza was searching frantically through her trunk and wardrobe for the perfect outfit for their outing today. The weather was cool with a sharp and chilling breeze at night. However, the sun was shining today and was abnormally warm for the middle of October.

Demelza appeared in front of Ginny wearing a pair of blue jeans and a lightweight black leather jacket with matching boots. Her hair was pulled back into a messy bun on her head and she had applied light makeup. She looked at Ginny, biting her lip slightly, "I'm not sure if this is it. What do you think?"

Ginny looked up from her letter, rolled it up, and attached it to her owl, Mercury's leg, and told her to deliver it to her mother at the Burrow.

"I think I have one thing that would make it better," Ginny answered and reached into her night stand, pulling out a tube of lipstick and handing it over. Demelza quickly applied it to her lips, a bright red color that contrasted with her jacket and bright blue eyes.

"Now that is perfect!" Ginny smiled brightly "He won't be able to resist those lips now!"

They shared a laugh and quickly descended from the girls dormitory. The Common Room was buzzing with activity as all the students were prepared for their day off campus. Neville greeted them both and they looped arms down to the Great Hall for breakfast before heading to Hogsmeade.

Ginny loaded her plate with fluffy pancakes and bacon. She ate quickly with the intent to leave as soon as possible. She looked up from her plate and found herself looking through the Slytherin table for the telltale blonde hair of Draco Malfoy. He was seated towards the end of the table closest to the door, with a plate of toast and jam, sipping on a cup of tea as he read a book. She had noticed him several times while in the Great Hall and always under the same circumstances. It seemed that Malfoy had decided to disengage himself from the rest of his house. He was always sitting alone, quiet and reserved, sometimes reading, sometimes eating quickly and leaving.

Today, he caught her gaze and with a raised eyebrow, he seemed to question why she would be looking at him. She shook her head and returned to her plate, keeping her face down so he wouldn't see her face turning bright red.

Hogsmeade was full of students, as it seemed that everyone had decided to head out for the day. Neville, Demelza, and Ginny had looped arms through the town with Neville in the middle looking dapper in blue jeans and a black shirt. They passed several shops, looking through the store windows at Wizarding gadgets and expensive jewelry. The trio had entered Zonko's and perused the shelves, looking at the newest gadgets. Although they all agreed that the Weasley twins' shop had much better products. Afterwards, they headed to Honeyduke's. Ginny made a purchase of her favorite candies- chocolate frogs and sugar quills. She made an effort to purposefully stay a distance away from Neville and Demelza, as they shopped. Ginny gave Demelza a wink and mouthed that she would meet them at the Three Broomsticks.

Ginny made her way along High Street and stopped outside of the Quill shop, checking her coin pouch, she proceeded inside, deciding that a small splurge wouldn't hurt her. The first aisle was filled with different inks- disappearing, color changing, and animation ink being the most interesting of all the choices. She continued around the bend to the next aisle, stopping near the end to pick up a golden tipped quill with wrapped with an intricate vine design and topped with a dark green feather.

"I don't believe that you can afford that quill, Weasley," a familiar voice stated from behind her.

She turned, her eyes ablaze, "I don't believe that is any of your information, Malfoy," she spat back.

His long fingers plucked the Quill from her hands and admired it closer.

"A very interesting choice, for a Gryffindor that is," his eyes seemed to twinkle in interest.

Her hand reached out to grab the Quill back from his grasp, but she was too slow.

"Poor manners, Weasley," he leaned towards her ear. His lips only centimeters from her pale skin. "All you have to do is ask," and his soft breath was on her neck as he enunciated the final word, "Ginny."

Her head whipped around to face his, a questioning look in her eyes before promptly stomping on his foot and exiting the shop.

She had completely forgotten about meeting her friends back at The Three Bropmsticks and headed straight back to Hogwarts. Her mind was in a constant battle with itself. Draco Malfoy, of all people, had seemed to be flirting with her. Her mind couldn't wrap itself around the concept and instead decided that it was another evil tactic on his part to get under her skin. He was, obviously, successful at his attempts. Her body had reacted to his soft voice, the closeness of his body, and the feeling that had pulled on her most intimate parts because of those things. She had let him get the better of her and had gotten angry. She was entering the main entrance to the castle when she realized that she had inadvertently ditched her friends for the day.

The dormitory was empty when she opened the door, as it seemed that everyone else was still enjoying their time outside the castle walls. She slipped her shoes off and grabbed an Alchemy book that she had gotten from the library. She was about to flop down onto her bed before she had seen a small piece of parchment- it was folded into a small square and the edges were worn.

Excitedly, she opened it and frowned.

Dear Ginny,

I don't know how to say this without hurting your feelings, but I really need you to stop writing. We are trying to hide and it was mentioned that the letters from you, no matter how much I love them, may be giving away our position.

We are okay. We are safe. We miss you.

Until I See You Again,

H

Her heart sank and she couldn't help the small sob that escaped from her lips. They were safe but they were in hiding. Harry loved her letters but wanted her to stop writing for their safety. Writing letters to Harry was the only thing keeping her sane over the summer, then with the start of school, she was hardly writing anyways, but she couldn't help but be hurt that she wouldn't be able to write him anymore. However, perhaps the worst part was that he hadn't said he loved her. Her first and only letter from Harry lacked to mention his feelings for her in any way. Yes, they had broken up so he could go and save the world, but she hadn't thought that it was real or that it would last.

Yet here she was, looking dumb because of Harry Potter, again. She collapsed onto her bed face down and cried her heart out for The-Boy-She-Once-Loved-And-Lost.


End file.
